Category Archives: Creative Writing

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Welcome to Writing Tip Wednesdays, where I post (you guessed it) tips on writing every other Wednesday at 5:00 PM ET. This week’s topic:

I’ve been reading an interest book lately called The Book of Joy. It’s a book that is an interfaith dialogue between Archbishop Desmond Tutu and the Dalai Lama, each an important figure in their respective religions, Christianity and Buddhism.

One of the things that has already stuck and inadvertently been applied to my own life as a realization of late is this:

Suffering produces joy.

What does this mean? Because it sounds contradictory. But think about it—women who have children go through the process of childbirth (pain), but are so happy to have the new addition to their family, that many women opt to go through extreme pain more than once in order to have more than one child.

But it hurts! Why go through it?

Because suffering produces joy.

So this week, we are going to talk a little bit more about how suffering through torment can actually bring you real joy.Continue reading →

Welcome to Writing Tip Wednesdays, where I post (you guessed it) tips on writing every Wednesday at 5:00 PM ET. This week’s topic:

Just two weeks ago I addressed how to combat fear of rejection when it comes to writing (WRITING AND PUBLICATION: WHY REJECTION IS NEVER REJECTION), but this week, I am going to delve a little deeper into why it is important to push past not only the fear, but also the excuses that writers like to give themselves.

If you’re reading this, chances are you are creative in some fashion. Creatives, on the whole, have a tendency to be fiercely intelligent, dedicated, and, erm, over-dramatic.

*Ahem* Yes, well, I don’t know about you, but that’s never me. Never. …Okay, so MAYBE it is, but only some of the time.

You know the deadline and suddenly every negative thought you’ve ever pushed past is back. …Which may look a little something like this:

But wait, this is supposed to be a good thing, right? Well, getting published is. But often when we are presented with the possibility of realizing our dreams, it can be overwhelming. So how do we combat that? Well, first, we have to address some questions… Continue reading →

Welcome to Writing Tip Wednesdays, where I post (you guessed it) tips on writing every Wednesday at 5:00 PM ET. This week’s topic:

Greetings to you! It has been a bit since my last post, though I hope you’ll excuse my absence—I was in Japan, and thus my mind was on all things Japanese! Japan is my heart country, and I would love the chance to live there for longer than a month at a time (both of my trips have been a month in length). Now that I am back on American time, I am excited to get back into my normal routine: writing! And writing a lot. =)

My significant other and I had a chance to hear Neil Gaiman (author of Norse Mythology, American Gods, The Sandman, et. al.) speak a few weeks ago, and when discussing Norse Mythology particularly, which is his own retelling of the Norse myths, he made an excellent point. To paraphrase, he said that it is a writer’s job to know just enough of a subject they are including in their book. Did he say you needed to be an expert in a subject? NO!

Welcome to Writing Tip Wednesdays, where I post (you guessed it) tips on writing every Wednesday at 5:00 PM ET. This week’s topic:

Hello, everyone! Happy to be back with you this week; last week I had a nasty bout of the flu that left me extremely exhausted and out of it, and I would much rather be enjoying time to work on this blog. So, without further ado, let’s begin!

This week is all about love. Gushy, mooshy love. But perhaps not the kind you’d think—this week, we’re going to embrace the slightly narcissistic side of ourselves, and fall in love with our own creation. How and why?

Welcome to Writing Tip Wednesdays, where I post (you guessed it) tips on writing every Wednesday at 5:00 PM ET. This week’s topic:

Happy Wednesday! Is it really March already?! How did this happen?? Regardless, a happy first day of the month to you; I’m excited that it happens to fall on Writing Tip Wednesday! So I thought I would make today’s post a little extra special.

Today I am going to be talking about the possibility of quitting your day job in order to become a real writer. But here’s the kicker: I just lied to you.

Welcome to Writing Tip Wednesdays, where I post (you guessed it) tips on writing every Wednesday at 5:00 PM ET. This week’s topic:

This week’s post is especially aimed at goal-oriented writers, whether professional or amateur. We’re going to be talking about changing the way we think about how and how much we write in a day. Ready? Let’s dive right in.

Welcome to Writing Tip Wednesdays, where I post (you guessed it) tips on writing every Wednesday at 5:00 PM ET. This week’s topic:

So this week is going to be a bit different from what I normally do. For those of you who have been reading for a while, you know I usually like to stick pretty strictly to “how to write” themed posts.

But today I’m going talk about why we write, and why it’s important to keep writing.

There’s been a lot of turmoil in the political/human rights world lately, and regardless of which side you are on, the whole situation has been very stressful. Facebook newsfeeds are starting to fill up with posts like, “ENJOY THIS PICTURE OF A HAPPY PUPPY BECAUSE LET’S FACE IT WE COULD ALL USE IT.”

But what about stories? What about words? Do people still need them, or are drive-by 0.5 seconds of puppies all the world needs right now?